Flapmax and Intel team up to push AI in Africa

Flapmax, a leading Nigerian artificial intelligence (AI) company, has partnered with Intel to foster AI innovation in Africa.

The collaboration is intended to provide technology access, training, mentorship, and funding opportunities to entrepreneurs in emerging markets through the FAST Accelerator program. FAST is designed to help startups that are building cloud-based and AI-enabled products and services supporting Africa’s communities, companies, and governments.

“Flapmax has been working with Intel to develop sustainable digital solutions that readily expand AI accessibility in underserved communities, and we are excited to build on our momentum with the FAST Accelerator program,” said Dr Dave Ojika, founder and CEO of Flapmax.

“Bridging the knowledge gap in technological advancement is key to creating meaningful social impact. Through this partnership with Intel, Flapmax will bring cutting-edge technology and advanced curricula, including generative AI, robotics, and deep tech, to innovators in Africa and other technologically underserved communities.”

Created by Flapmax in partnership with Microsoft, FAST Accelerator combines business development, AI integration, funding, and community building opportunities designed to enable startups to scale more rapidly and sustainably. More than 800 startups from 25+ countries applied to join the inaugural program. Startup leaders are encouraged to apply to this year’s FAST Accelerator program.

The top startup participants will embark on an enriching five-week program in Silicon Valley, California, forging relationships with industry experts, potential investors, and global partners through Flapmax’s vibrant ecosystem of over 600 corporate partners.

Michael Campbell, general manager of Intel’s education client division, says: “Intel’s mission to shape the future of computing and enable a more intelligent, connected, and productive world aligns perfectly with Flapmax’s vision to bring AI technology to all aspects of life, inclusive of underserved populations in Africa and other emerging markets.

“The partnership with Flapmax will greatly accelerate AI adoption for these communities, driving scalable business growth, optimised operations, and contributing to a more sustainable world.”

Programme participants will collaborate closely with Intel through extensive mentorship and coaching, ranging from co-innovation projects to sales & marketing support and go-to-market enablement to expand their reach to a broader audience.

Members of the Flapmax engineering team will help startups apply new Intel-optimised AI hardware and software solutions as well as scale and fine-tune their AI models on Microsoft Azure cloud platform.

Participants will benefit from additional perks, including Microsoft for Startups Founders Hub (up to $150,000 of cloud credits) and Azure OpenAI (including ChatGPT, DALL·E 2, and other Large Language Models: LLM releases), as well as access to Microsoft 365 and Dynamics 365 developer 

For more information visit: https://www.FastAccelerator.com